Disney Announces “Planes” Theatrical Sequel

Disney announced this afternoon that they will release Planes: Fire & Rescue as a 3D theatrical feature on July 18, 2014. The film is a sequel to Planes, itself a spin-off of Pixar’s Cars, that will open in theaters on August 9. Both of the Planes films are produced by Disneytoon, the John Lasseter-run division that handles all the projects that Pixar and Disney Feature won’t touch with a ten-foot-pole. It should also be noted that Planes 2 wasn’t among the 15-feature release slate that Disney announced last month so we can only guess how many more Disneytoon features will flood theaters over the coming years in addition to the Disney and Pixar features.

You’re welcome, India. You have more American feature animation work to do.

http://the-animatorium.blogspot.com/ Natalie Belton

What next? Talking trains, spaceships, ships, submarines? John Lasseter what are you doing?

Aaron Mincey

Thomas and Friends have that job already.

Revy

He’s making $10 billion in merchandising, that’s what he’s doing. In theory, these movies should be funding the more adventurous and artistically challenging films at the studio.

Except instead we have Finding Dory and a Monster’s prequel.

Barrett

Such a scheme might be forgivable if the proceeds from such cash-out films/toy lines were put towards development of unique, more indie-type stories that don’t really fit into a mass market tentpole mold. Hell, even something as ambitious as Wall-E or Lilo & Stitch would be an improvement over what’s on the horizon for Pixar. The only upcoming film that seems at all interesting to me is the “Inside the mind” movie.

canimal

I’m rooting for segways, personally.

Alex Dudley

Jeez, Disney. At least wait to see how well the first one does.
Well, I suppose they can change their mind and send the sequel straight to DVD if the first movie bombs.

Still I’m increasingly growing concerned about all these animated films. A lot of good can come from it (experimentation, more jobs), but a lot of bad could too (audiences get tired of it, less films, less jobs, more outsourcing)

Roberto Severino

I have an idea! Let’s remake Tex Avery’s “One Cab’s Family” and “Little Johnny Jet” as CGI motion pictures after we can’t come up with any more original ideas. That will ring in the big bucks!

I don’t think the wage slaves over in Asia will care about all the work they will have to do nor the animators domestically who have objected to such questionable practices by these big companies.

Meredith

The pilot community is especially excited about this film and Disney is showing the film early at Oshkosh (Think Comicon for aviation). Some are even hoping this film could interest a new generation of aviation enthusiasts…while that may be a bit of a high bar to set, I had heard great things from one of the artists involved in the feature. I really hope this is a solid film and does well.

Andrew Kieswetter

Bolt II now, Disney! (pretty please?)

#$*&!

Good lord no, please no. If anything make the film Chris started to make before he got kicked out.

I’ll Pass,Thanks.

It’s hard to imagine a less animation-friendly premise than “What if your dog DIDN’T have super powers?”.

Joel

As much as I like “Bolt,” I’ve had an intense, unscratchable itch to see Chris Sanders’ “American Dog” for years.

Barrett

I can’t think of a more forgettable film from Disney in recent times. I got more out of Cars 2 than I did Bolt.

Toonio

Disney is drunk on planes and it’s about to be kicked out of the flight.

canimal

Unbelievable that there is even enough of an audience outside of 5 year old kids that makes these spinoffs worth it.

yep

Hey as long as it gets the kid to sit down and shut up for a while parents will keep on buying this stuff.

SarahJesness

It’s all merchandising here, really. You been to a store lately? TONS of “Cars” merchandise and I wouldn’t be surprised if they do the same for “Planes”.

Pat Lewis

I’m not sure how to feel about this. I’m more upset when the one Pixar release we get in a given year is a sequel I’m not very interested in, so at least this isn’t taking resources away from the primary Disney/Pixar animated films. On the other hand, it would be nice if Disney had a secondary animation department that was dedicated to putting out smaller-budgeted, riskier movies instead.

Bored silly

Is no one going to comment that not only is Disney/Pixar doing more sequels than DreamWorks, but that they’ve taken over the ‘DreamWorks’ brow pose’? Way to push the medium forward, you innovators, you.

Dana B

They’re pre-planning a series inspired by a series of theirs that made boat-loads of money off toys to make boat-loads of money off toys? Total mind-blower…
Hey, if it works for Hasbro, the big mouse would be crazy not to do that.

observant

Ironic that Lasseter has been sidelined to create the same fine “straight-to-landfill” product he promised to eradicate during the Pixar/Disney merge.

Alex Dudley

They manage to work around it by a technicality. He put an end to direct to video sequels, but said nothing about doing direct to video SPIN-OFFS.
It’s completely different!

Revy

I’m fairly certain Planes was done by Prana, in India. Could be wrong, but from a reliable source (former Prana employee), that’s what I heard.

Diego Letamendi

Checking on Wikipedia it says that it was done by DisneyToon, Disney’s animation studio for direct to dvd sequels

Natalie Nicole Johnson

Please Disney—stop! Make sequels to movies that people will actually want to see!